Hunting Cari (First Wave) (14 page)

“That’s
absurd! Granted the things they are doing are strange and unusual. But do you,
a man of science, honestly believe that is possible?” Gracus wanted to laugh at
Amun’s suggestion. He really did. Nevertheless, a part of him was truly afraid
that he may be right. He looked at Randor to help him ease his own mind over
this, expecting the man to scoff at such an insane thought.

“I don’t
know if it’s possible or not. I’ve heard of it happening among the humans, rarely,
but it did happen. And with Cari’s abilities, I think it would be a mistake to
assume that it isn’t possible. If you had asked me days ago if I thought they
would be acting the way they are at the moment, I would have told you no. Now,
I have no idea what is possible and what isn’t. I know that I don’t want to
take that chance.” All Randor wanted right now was to find a way to get through
to Cari and Scaden.

“Oh come
on! You two can’t be serious!” The thought of what they were suggesting,
combined with what he had been seeing himself, scared Gracus to his very core.

“Do we
really want to take the chance? More specifically are you willing to bet their
lives on the chance that we’re wrong?” Amun asked him.

*****

Scaden
could feel Cari’s pain and sorrow so deeply he didn’t know where her pain
ended, and his began. He didn’t know if he missed her so badly that his mind
was playing tricks on him or if somehow they had bonded that deeply. He tried
to send comforting thoughts the first day or so, hoping to ease her worry and
sadness. And it seemed to work for a while.

However, as
the days wore on, the longer he was kept from her, the more his own sense of
defeat was destroying his ability to try to keep his spirits up. It was as if
her sadness was being heightened so dramatically that neither one of them could
combat it any longer.

He wished
he could talk to her and find out why she was feeling so strongly when she
didn’t even know what the outcome of this was going to be.

The only
explanation he could think of was that she had picked up on someone else’s
emotions and had figured it out. This was more than possible since even he was
able to pick up on Amun and Gracus’ pain and despair when they had come in
earlier.

Not knowing
how to help her, he put his hand on the wall of his closet which separated
their rooms. And even though he felt stupid doing so, he tried to pour as much
love into the gesture as he could.

Immediately,
he began to feel an overwhelming sense of love and peace. It was all he needed
to know to assure him that she was able to feel how much he cared. It took all
of his strength to stop himself from breaking down over the loss of her. That
he’d never be able to hold her again, or see her beautiful smile.

He forced
himself to concentrate on his love for her as he tried to will himself to
sleep. Sleep and dreams were the only place where he could hold her and love
her again. Where the world outside no longer existed, and they met in a world
of their own creation where no one could separate them. He would take her to
his world again this time. Show her, his home and the beauty of Valendra.

*****

Cari placed
her hand on the wall and could feel Scaden’s love pour from him in waves, and
she sent her love back to him more powerfully than she had known she could.

In the last
few days, her emotions had become so out of control that she had begun to worry
that she was causing the hopelessness she had been feeling from him. However,
she knew, deep down, that it wasn’t true. Everyone was hiding something from
her. Something that was causing Scaden to feel that way, and no one was willing
to tell her what it was.

She had
figured out days ago that Scaden had started to absorb some of her powers. She
knew from her parents and Randor that this was common among the
human/Valendran’s that had mated. Even without this confirmation she knew with
all of her heart and soul that he was her mate. Even so, this seemed different
than what she remembered of her parents and the conversations she, and Randor
had about this. It was much more powerful than she expected.

In fact,
she had expected to lose a slight amount of her abilities since they were
essentially being given to her mate. But she was stronger than ever before, if
something was magnifying not only her ability, but his new ability as well.

And the
dreams… they had become more vivid than they had ever been before. In them, she
and Scaden were together and nothing but awakening could tear them apart. The
first few times, she took him to all of her favorite places on Earth. The
Coliseum and ancient sites in Italy, the streets of Paris, where she made him
try all the different foods. She took him to Greece, to see the beautiful
waters of the Mediterranean, New Orleans to marvel at the diversity of the
people and food.

Scaden
loved the food on Earth, and she wanted to see his smile and joy at each of the
new tastes she introduced him to. Lately, he began taking her to another world.
She knew it was Valendra by the pride in his voice as he told her of the
architecture and history. How she wished the dreams were true. And that they
were safe together.

Even though
she knew the dreams were nothing more than a figment of her imagination and
desire to be with him, she found herself spending more and more time wanting
only to sleep. And she knew Scaden was sleeping more as well. Maybe it was the
loneliness, the despair that was causing them to want to avoid awake. She
didn’t know and didn’t really want to try to figure it out when it was so much
easier to drift off into sleep and be with him.

A powerful
feeling of lethargy overcame her; she knew Scaden must have fallen asleep. Her
hand slowly slid down the wall as she gave herself up to her dreams and Scaden.

Chapter Twelve

“It’s been
almost two weeks! What the hell do you expect us to do? Sit around and watch
them die while you do nothing? Because that seems to be exactly what is
happening, and we’re sick of doing nothing!”

Gracus,
Amun and Randor sat at a table in one of the ship’s conference rooms as yet
another member of the crew told them of their idea to break into both Scaden
and Cari’s quarters to try to get them out.

Gracus
could understand his frustration and anger. They all felt that way as they
watched helplessly as their commander, and his mate slowly began to drift
farther from them every day. There was no longer a doubt in anyone’s mind that
they were mates.

The problem
seemed to be convincing anyone on the council that they were, as they continued
to refuse to open Scaden’s quarters until they arrived. None of the crews were
even sure if the two of them would make it that long. The council was so
certain that sooner or later both would get hungry enough to eat, and since the
basic life scans on both showed only a slight drop in heart rate that they were
in no danger of dying any time soon. Everyone on this ship knew better.

“Callumus,
we all understand how you are feeling. We have tried every day to talk the
council into breaking the security seal on Scaden’s door, and they won’t do it.
They aren’t listening to us. We’ve sent them all the vids of Commander Scaden
and Cari, and although they will admit they’ve never seen anything like it;
they still refuse.”

“We are
doing everything we can to come up with a way to gain access to both quarters.
But your idea of blasting a hole into the door would not only endanger the
commander’s life, but the lives of everyone on this ship. There are too many
things that can go wrong, and you know that.” Gracus tried his best to calm the
man. And he couldn’t blame him for wanting to try such a drastic approach to
solving the problem either since he, and Randor had already thought of the
exact same thing. Unfortunately, the risks were far too great for them to try.

“Callumus,
if anything happens to one of them, we are afraid it will happen to both. We
can’t take a chance that any harm that befalls the commander, will cause Cari
to decline even further. You understand that don’t you?” Amun added. They all
knew there was no longer any point in trying to lie to the crew regarding what
was going on. Every one of them could see exactly what was happening. And even
though the council had determined it was best to block the vids of Cari and
Scaden’s quarters from the crew, Gracus, Amun and Randor had decided to put it
to a vote.

There was
not one single crew member that didn’t vote to allow the vids to continue to be
broadcast around the ship. And the three of them had decided to accept whatever
consequences the council wanted to give them for disobeying.

The
decision to allow the vote completely changed the atmosphere around the ship.
Where before, everyone was ready to kill them for what they saw as their
betrayal of their commander and his mate, they seemed to have decided to
postpone that in an effort to try to find a way to help them… at least for now
anyway. They were not under any illusions that the crew would ever forget or
forgive them for what they had done.

“Sir, I
think Balduen and I might have an idea. We’ve been on the planet and not
subjected to the highly emotional situation you are facing on the ship. I think
we may be able to look at this more objectively than any of you. From what we
know of the situation, you need to get into both of their quarters and get them
to MedLab, correct?” Niklosi interjected from the comm.

He had been
reporting to Gracus and Amun the latest status updates on the search for Jess,
when Callumus had entered the conference room and had heard the conversation.
He and Balduen had been carefully following what was going on with their
commander and Cari while they had been on the planet, and were very concerned
about them.

“You think
you have a way to override the council’s lock on Scaden’s door?” Randor asked
him skeptically. They had tried everything, had thought of everything. If the
three of them hadn’t thought of it, the crew had. Nothing had worked or would
after careful consideration. He wasn’t going to hold out hope on yet another
failed attempt.

“Well, not
exactly. We know of a way to get in without overriding anything and without
blasting a hole in the wall either.” Balduen added.

Niklosi and
Balduen began explaining to them how to get into the commander and Cari’s
quarters, the others listened intently wishing they had figured out the same
simple solution weeks ago.

*****

“Where are
we?” Cari asked Scaden in breathless wonder. She had never seen anything so
beautiful.

Scaden
hugged her closely to him, thinking the only thing more beautiful than where
they were, was the woman in his arms. “We are in my special place, not far from
my home. It’s a private area that has been in my family for as long as my
family has been here. I would come as a boy and play, and as an adult to think
and relax after my studies.”

Cari
couldn’t believe such a place even existed. They were standing on a beach that
surrounded the bluest, clearest water she had ever seen. It was a huge lake of
some kind that was surrounded by equally large mountains and heavily wooded
areas. It looked like she had stepped into an area of a National Park on Earth,
but the colors were much more vibrant.

The twin
suns shone brightly on the lake, the air much cleaner and crisper than anything
she’d experienced on Earth. And the strange animals she’d seen the last time
Scaden had brought her to his world, scampered around them as if they knew they
need not to fear them. It made the whole scene much more surreal, and drove
home to her that this was nothing more than her imagination taking hold of her
in her dreams.

“Don’t
Cari. I can feel you pulling away already. We agreed that if this was a shared
dream, or just our own personal dreams that we wouldn’t ruin our time together
with worry or sadness.” Scaden chided her, hugging her tighter to him.

“I know.
I’m sorry. I just wish it could really be this way. I wish this was real.” Cari
replied sadly.

“Come on!
You have to see my special hideout!

He grabbed
her hand and pulled her towards what looked like a trail, not far from where
they were standing.

She
followed behind him a short distance into the woods until they came upon what
looked like a small stone villa. The silver stones captured rays of the sun
that penetrated through the canopy of trees and caused them to sparkle like
prisms. It was magical.

“What is
this?” She asked him in awe.

“This is my
resting home. I think on Earth it’s called a vacation home. When I had more
than a few days away from studies or my duties I would come and stay here to
relax and just be alone.”

He pulled
her onto the stone terrace and through the door, into the home. She looked
around in wonder at the beautiful home. The entryway led directly into an open
living area with several comfortable looking couches adorning it. It was a very
large space with an entire wall of glass that looked out on what looked like a
garden area.

Letting go
of his hand, she stepped farther into the room and began looking around. On the
far right, there was an open kitchen area, which would have been a chef’s
dream. Long rows of counters topped with an almost iridescent gray stone,
cabinets seemed to be everywhere. The Valendran version of a stove and
refrigerator that she had seen on their last trip to his world, and what looked
like a bar area with chairs pulled up to it.

Moving to
the left of the living area, there was a huge bedroom, with a bed in the center
that looked large enough to fit four men the size of Scaden. A few tables and
chairs were to the left and two doors on the right.

She headed
to the first door and opened it to a large closet obviously for clothing and
storage, which would make any diva drool in envy. The next door opened to a
huge bathroom area, that contained a bath the size of a small pool that was
sunk into the floor and seemed to be perpetually fed by what must be a hot
spring judging by the steam coming off the water. It looked unbelievably
inviting.

It reminded
her of an ancient roman bath, and she wondered again at how much influence her
uncle and the others had truly held over the people of Earth. Ignoring the
shower area in the opposite corner and the toilet area, she stepped closer to
the bath.

“I knew you
would love the bath. It was built to be fed by a natural hot spring that lies
beneath the home. It is drained and fed in a natural cycle that not only keeps
it clean, but keeps the water at a constantly warm temperature.” Scaden told
her as he walked up behind her and wrapped his arms around her again. He would
never get tired of touching her. He loved nothing more than the feel of her in
his arms. Even the holding of her hand seemed to calm and soothe his soul.

Making up
her mind to do as they promised and enjoy these times with each other, she
reached up to the large brooch holding her dress together and released it. The
dress fluttered in a pool of whisper thin fabric around her feet. Completely
naked she turned in his arms and pressed herself against him seductively.

Scaden
sucked in a sharp breathe at the feel of her soft, naked body against him and
instantly became hard. He leaned down and gently took her lips in a long and
passionate kiss. His hands ran the length of her naked back and buttocks,
trying to feel as much of her soft skin as he could.

Cari wanted
him badly, wanted to feel the closeness of him joined with her. Without
breaking their kiss, she unbuttoned his shirt and released the fastenings on
his pants and pushed them down, encouraging him to finish removing them, so he
could be naked with her.

Scaden
pulled away slightly and removed his shirt and pants. Leaning down he swept her
into his arms and stepped into the bath.

The warm
water licked at their skin as Scaden found a built in bench to sit on and
pulled her across his lap to straddle him. He gently took her face into his
hands.

“I love you
Cari. More than the air I breathe, I love you.” His lips descended on hers.

Cari
scooted farther up his lap, until her breasts were pressed tightly against his
chest, and the head of his hard cock probed at her opening. Scaden groaned at
the feel of her opening herself for him, and he pushed gently upward, settling
himself firmly inside her.

Cari leaned
her head back moaning at the feel of his slight penetration. Needing all of
him, she drove herself down onto him, until he was buried deeply inside of her.
She clutched his shoulders to steady herself, the feelings overwhelming her at
the feel of him.

Scaden
sucked in his breath, trying to stop himself from bucking wildly against her as
his body demanded of him to do. Her tight sheathe, squeezing his cock like a
fist making his beast demand more. He pushed the beast aside, letting her
control their pleasure.

Cari knew
he was encouraging her to set the pace of their lovemaking and rose up
slightly. She reveled in his groan of displeasure, before driving back down on
him forcing him deeper inside of her. They both groaned at the feel of him
buried so deeply inside of her.

Cari had
never experienced anything more wonderful in her life as the feel of Scaden
inside of her, with his arms wrapped around her. She felt more loved and
protected than she ever had before. Keeping her hands firmly on his wide
shoulders for support she began to move on him at a leisurely pace, wanting the
pleasure to last as long as they could handle it.

Scaden
moved his hands to her hips and used them gently to encourage her movements,
his fingers clenching and unclenching on each of her up and down strokes. He
ground his teeth, to try to his desire to take control and drive wildly into
her until they both exploded. This was too amazing to end so quickly, and he
wanted to savor the feel of her body accepting and loving his own. The
knowledge that he could bring someone as wonderful as she, such pleasure, made
him feel like king.

He knew
when she began to lose control; her fingers clutched his shoulders more
tightly, her nails digging in slightly. Her movements became more erratic and
faster as her excitement took over. He could feel her excitement heightening
his own, and the wildness took over them both as her emotions fed him and his
emotions fed hers.

He grabbed
her hips more tightly and began forcing her down harder onto his cock as he
bucked upward, driving himself even further into her. The pace he set was wild
and fast and almost impossible for her to keep up with, so she held on and
allowed him to drive them both over that brink they both wanted so badly.

He heard
her cry out his name, and dropped her head onto his shoulders. The feel of her
pussy milking him as she came, drove him over the edge and after three more
thrusts he gathered her tightly to his chest, and he pumped his seed deeply
into her.

They both
panted and held each other tightly as they tried to calm down. Scaden used one
hand gently to caress her back, while holding her firmly against him with the
other, content to have her in his arms.